Primary Election

In response to “California Clout,” Opinion, Feb. 25:

Why do Californians suffer from this self-destructive urge to think only in extremes?

While William Schneider’s article outlines some of the problems with the proposal to move the date of the California primary elections from June to March, it does not adequately address the reasons why Californians are not happy with their diluted power under the present system.

The choice doesn’t just have to be between the present system, in which the race is already decided by the time we vote so that we’re too late to make an impact, or being so early that we scatter our weighty influence before the race has really taken shape and the issues and candidates are clearly identified.

Instead, why not consider a middle-range solution?

Instead of jumping from the end of the race, in June, to the start of the race, in March, why not just move the primary to the last week in April, after the race is well under way and issues and candidates are clearly defined, but before the race is all wrapped up, so that we can have a substantial influence in the final out-come?

MARK ADAMS

Sherman Oaks